ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College field hockey team kept right on rolling on Saturday afternoon when it made its return to Higgins Stadium on South Hill. The Bombers tied a season high with three scores, while the defense remained smothering in notching a third consecutive shutout in the 3-0 win over Susquehanna. The victory was IC's fourth consecutive win, improving the team to 5-1 on the year, which is the best start for the program since the 2013 season.
 
For the second time in three games and third time overall this season it was a first-year player that netted the game-winner. Rookie striker Jaqueline Mirabile got IC off and running with a score less than four-minutes into today's contest. Senior striker Maria McGloin added a pair of second-half tallies to give the Bombers some breathing room down the stretch. McGloin has now scored four times over the past two contests.
 
Defensively, it was another masterful effort by the Bombers' talented back line. The IC defense was tested often during the contest, especially during the opening 35-minutes of action, but held Susquehanna out of high danger areas throughout much of the afternoon. Junior goalie Savanna Lenker was once again there when called upon for the Bombers. She tallied her fourth shutout of the year in a two-save effort. With the performance Ithaca has upped its current shutout streak to 268-minutes and 57-seconds of game action.
 
For the third straight contest it was another extremely positive start for the Bombers. Playing on home turf for just the second time this season, IC came out aggressive with the majority of possession and chances during the opening minutes of the game. Just 3:45 into the game Ithaca earned its first penalty corner opportunity and wasted little time in capitalizing on the chance. Senior striker Meg Dowd provided the entry to the point, where senior Maddy Ryan quickly whipped a pass to the left side of the penalty arc to senior back Kimmy Briscoe. The senior back fired a hard shot on target that was stopped by Susquehanna keeper Emily DiGaetano; however, the rebound fell perfectly to Mirabile who was unmarked on the doorstep. She calmly settled the ball and lifted a high shot into the upper left corner of the cage to give Ithaca the early 1-0 lead.
 
Although Ithaca continued to play aggressively during the few minutes following the goal, the visitors began to assert themselves as the half continued. The River Hawks best chance came in the ninth-minute when the second of back-to-back penalty corner chances occurred. Hunter Pitman fired a great shot that look ticketed for a tying goal; however, Briscoe was there to swat away the shot out of midair with her stick to make a clutch defensive save that ensured IC would hold the tenuous 1-0 lead.
 
Susquehanna would control the ball for the majority of the remaining opening half, but had little to show for it when the teams hit the sideline for halftime. Despite an 8-to-3 advantage in penalty corners and a 7-to-2 lead in shot attempts, Susquehanna could only muster two shots on goal during the first 35-minutes.
 
When play resumed to begin the second half, Ithaca buckled down and took control of the game. Just 3:42 into the half, McGloin tallied her first of two in the half on a great penalty corner set play. Again Dowd started the play with the insert with the ball getting worked to Maddy Ryan at the center point. She stick-handled a couple of steps to her right and fired a low hard shot into a jumble of bodies in front. Sophomore striker Maya Rodgers was able to get a stick on the ball through the mass of humanity in front of the cage, shuffling a perfect touch pass to the doorstep of the cage. Quick as a flash, McGloin pounced on the chance, swiping home the ball into the vacated cage to double the Ithaca lead to 2-0.
 
Now with some insurance the River Hawks began to stretch the field in the hopes of generating some quick offense. The result was a litany of scoring chances for the Bombers, as the home side kept on coming against the overwhelmed visitors. McGloin tallied her second of the day to ice the game with 17:29 to play, scoring on a similar play to her first goal of the half. This time it was Mirabile who provided the slick feed to set up IC's goal-scoring leader.
 
Ithaca finished the second half with an 8-to-4 advantage in penalty corner chances and a 10-to-5 lead in shot attempts. The offense was more than enough for the Bombers defense and the play of Lenker. IC kept Susquehanna to the periphery for the remainder of the contest to close out the clean sheet.
 
Ithaca returns to action on Wednesday, September 19, when the team hits the road for a nationally-ranked test at No. 18 SUNY Cortland. Start time for the contest is 7:00 p.m.